M&A Corporate Finance Intern Review

Role is to assist in any potential or ongoing deals, and in any business development work that is set aside while full time employees are busy on live engagements. My day-to-day basis would be checking of emails, attending team meeting, networking with the team, using software such as Pitchbook to assess companies, and Microsoft Excel and Powerpoint to present work. Each day is different due to variety of deals and subsectors within TMT M&A.

New skills include using new external software (such as CapIQ, Pitchbook, MergerMarket) as well as a first insight into valuing companies based on revenue multiples and presenting this in 'football fields'. I have developed existing skills such as my Excel and Powerpoint proficiencies, but also my communication skills with respect to corporate deals. I have built on my existing knowledge of corporate finance, specifically with regards to M&A processes, and have learnt from scratch what the TMT market consists of.

I was given plenty of responsibility within my internship. I was often given tasks with quite a broad scope and it gave me the freedom to tackle the task the way I saw fit. For example, when preparing decks for the team, I was instructed on what a PowerPoint slide should contain but the content arrangement and gathering was up to me. Colleagues were always happy to help and guide where I was unsure but the freedom allowed me to tackle my learning curve more proactively.

At EY, there is plenty of support, everywhere. From onboarding, HR/student recruitment team are all very friendly and willing to answer any questions you have even before you begin the internship. When you start, you are assigned a buddy (a grad) and a counsellor (a manager) to look after you during the course of the internship. They check up on you regularly and are always happy to answer any questions. On top of that, the rest of the TMT team were also so supportive, from Partners all the way down to Analysts.

The company culture at EY is fantastic. In M&A specifically, everyone seems to actively enjoy coming to work and collaborate together. There is the right balance of socials and work which make for a fantastic dynamic, and interns are encouraged to join in with all of these, despite the short time you are around. Everyone is happy to converse and engage with conversations, even if you are just an intern. Strong link with the EY Foundation also make for a very giving community here at EY.

I really enjoyed my placement here at EY. I think the balance between exploring the division and team you incorporated in, and the socials and networking you are exposed to makes for a very enjoyable internship placement. Everyone, interns and full time employees, is really friendly, ambitious and like-minded so it makes for great conversations in and out of work. It is a really interesting place to work in a great location and I thoroughly like it.

Yes

I would strongly encourage anyone with an interest in corporate finance to apply to EY. I would advise them to look into the company because I think it will surprise them the initiative EY are part of. The advice I would stress is to look into the different sectors in corporate finance to ensure you apply for the right sort of team. If you have a particular interest in renewables or technology etc, you should voice this to your interviewer so you get put in the right team.